On Monday’s webinar I asked a participant how we met (it was a few years ago at a networking dinner), and if he used JibberJobber. His response was:
“I am not in job search mode (yet) and I don’t use JibberJobber. However, is there value in JibberJobber for folks not looking for a job? Can it be used for other purposes?”
Well, I’m glad you asked!
It is true that JibberJobber helps your organize and track your job search.
More than that, JibberJobber is a relationship management tool.
Whether you are looking for a job or not, you should be networking. And if you are networking, even if it is just with neighbors or family, you could get value out of JibberJobber. For example,
A grandma or grandpa (totally out of the job market) could use JibberJobber to remind of family birthdays, phone numbers, email addresses, etc. If you send an email to someone (or a bunch of people), like a family newsletter, you could log that email on the recipients so you can know WHO got WHAT communication.
A solopreneur needs to network and work his/her prospects. Stay in touch with contacts, make sure you follow-up on opportunities or relationships, remember when you said what to who, and when you sent what, for what occasion, to who.
Harvey Mackay says you need to dig your well before you’re thirsty. Anyone who might be a job seeker in a few years should nurture and grow their network (aka, dig their well) RIGHT NOW. Nurture those relationships. And keep track of how you do it with JibberJobber.
Mark LeBlanc is a business coach who says you should send specific mail (email or snail mail) to different segments of your “database.” For example, you would send past customers one message while prospects get another message. You would send industry colleagues a certain message and you would send evangelists (people who help talk about you and your services or brand) a different message. Sending appropriate messages to the right people increases the readership of your messages… doesn’t that make sense? You can easily manage this with the TAGS feature in JibberJobber.
I track my personal service providers, including garage door guy, the appliance fixers, attorneys, air conditioner, plumber and electricians, in JibberJobber. When need someone to service something at my house or business I can easily find who I used last, what they did, how much I paid, and what their contact info is. I can even track WHO came and did the service, and if I liked them or not.
None of those are necessarily job search related, but all of them help me spend less time on google and trying to remember who I should follow-up with, or who I need to call. Relying on my memory is not a good thing… and that’s where JibberJobber comes in.
Thanks for the question, and I hope you can see value in JibberJobber, whether you are in a job search or not!
It’s so important for us to manage our relationships year-round, not just when we’re looking for our next job.